Monday, January 23, 2012

Inbox(503)

From 1 January to last Monday there were 503 emails awaiting my attention in the main inbox. Not a lot for two and a bit weeks because of the holidays, but approaching the point of overload. Everyone with a desk job faces the same experience on return to the office. The same daunting task.

The cull.

There were only 19 I wanted to look at. That's 3.8% of 503. The other 96.2% of those emails were not worth opening for one reason or another - mostly inconsequential facebook-generated messages - about 100 alone from New Year's well-wishers.

Then I notice one email I was curious enough to want to open has an earlier message inviting me to some Dub Step thing. They may be friends on facebook but if they knew me well enough to know what I think of Dub Step's older and equally zoned-out wigger/hippy brother, Drum & Base, they wouldn't have bothered to invite me to some Dub Step thing. Move to trash, delete. So now there's only 18 out of 503.

In order of importance:

1. Email from MB. Don't really need to open this one, I can guess it will be what Mr Bradbury sends every year about this time: What the fuck are you doing about the blog? What the fuck are we doing? When are you going to get your shit together? He'll ask it in a much cooler way than that, but that's what it will be. I will ponder this for whatever period is probably too long and bordering on rude, then I'll be forced to over-promise in order to rectify and placate and because I feel bad about potentially having been rude. Always difficult conversations when there is naturally a New Year's expectation of planning having been done... and little evidence of it from anyone. I have about a dozen ideas that could make a difference, but they involve considerable effort and commitment, financial and human, that are beyond me just at the moment. Many of the scenarios are a matter of knowing how to indecently whore oneself out at a decent price. It's icky, but it's a necessity. Everyone driving content and pulling in substantial traffic faces the same questions of decency and whoredom. My co-bloggers are the best at what they do; we'll take it to the next level together. This year?/!

2. Automated bill. One of those have-to-pays. Do it online.

3-5. Facebook: The 336 friends awaiting approval is a keeper. A specific friend awaiting approval I'm interested in will be kept to remind me. An invite that may be relevant.

6,7. Linked In: The last update and one of a specific person linking in I want to keep.

8-15. NZPD, Bryce Edwards daily politics summary of on and offline commentary is a must-read even if it is history at this point.

16-17. A sales rep wanting to sell me something - still stuck on their database, but worth a look.

18. A link request. 99.9% certain to be spam, but vague enough at the start to make me want to open it anyway even though I know I shouldn't bother.

Lack of anything personal in the inbox, a lot of that seems to be txt or via facebook.

All in all a lot of communication going on and so little of it valuable.